Dress Up Play for Boys

by Lauri Griffin | More from this Blogger

05 May 2008 03:52 PM

Dress up boxes for little girls are easy to put together, but what can you do for little boys? Boys like to put on different clothes and have fun pretending too. I thought I'd share some of the things that have been in our costume box.

Hats are fun and easy. And sometimes it's all kids need to start rolling on a pretend game. When my oldest was a toddler, I bought a set of plastic hats that all my kids loved. There was a fireman's hat, a construction hard hat, a police hat, and a motorcycle helmet. It was kind of sad when they outgrew those hats, they'd played so many hours with them. They've also had a lot of fun with baseball caps, cowboy hats, and even straw hats.

Bandannas are great for belts, for cowboy kerchiefs, to stick in the back pocket of overalls, or to be a mask for the bad guy.

Over the years we've added a lot of pieces from Halloween costumes, skeleton gloves, cowboy boots, plastic glasses, magic wands, eye patches, pirate vests, and foam swords. When the boys were little we also had a set of plastic animal noses that they had a lot of fun with. The noses didn't stay on very well, but after a few minutes they didn't need that parrot or pig nose to pretend.

You really don't have to go all out with a costume box. Sometimes it's the smallest things that work for pretending - things like sunglasses, a plastic sheriff badge, a flashlight, or even an old sun hat. And you never know what will really spark that imagination or what kids will come up. Karate pants may be just what your space explorer needs, and a shiny vest may be armor for a shining knight or an alien visitor. Capes can be used for wizards, evil magicians, spooky ghosts, or superheroes.

Just because they may not want dresses and tiaras doesn't mean that boys should miss out on the fun of pretend dress up fun.

Also See:

More Dress Up Stuff

Costumes and Clothes - Extending the Life of a Child's Wardrobe

Learn more about Lauri Griffin

Lauri lives in Colorado with her husband and three sons. Amidst all the laundry and packing of lunches, she tries to keep parenting fun.

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JMcReynolds (95) 06 May 2008 08:58 AM

These are great ideas. Thanks! Of course, right now, the boy is quite happy parading around in my heels and his sister's pink dresses. He loves hats, though, so that's a great idea.

Lauri Griffin (2703) 08 May 2008 02:44 PM

JMcReynolds, hope your little guy has fun with the hats and dressing up!